Hello, me!

I am finally beginning to understand some of my eating trigger points. I also finally understand that if I am going to lose weight -- and keep it off -- I have to discover why I eat poorly.

My reasons for over-eating make sense: boredom, fatigue, stress and wine, the latter which causes my defenses to relax. But now that I have identified the causes, it really is so much easier to face -- and fight -- them when they pop up.

My No. 1 defense against over-eating is my journal. What started as a place to write the food I eat and the PointsPlus I consume has become my third eye into ME. My journal keeps me honest because I am writing everything down, including my emotions. Before I head to the store for a bag of Twizzlers, I calmly sit down, take stock of me, and ask myself why Twizzlers are calling my name. If I do eat those Twizzlers, I again make sure I write down how I am feeling.

I also read past entries daily. Each page has a colored check: yellow for great days; blue for the not-so-good days. On days when I need extra help, I turn to the yellow-checked days. When I am having a great day, I read the blue-checked pages to understand myself just a tad more.

My other new line of defense is to keep myself distracted. At the top of my house I have created a meditation room, and on days when I could eat everything in sight, I make a bee-line for my special space. Some days I just breathe, other days I do some yoga, and some days I just sit quietly and meditate. Just divorcing myself from whatever was making me think about food is usually sufficient to get me back on track.

My third key: I am cooking terrific meals, mixing it up daily so I won't get bored.

Have I been perfect? Of course not. But little by little, I am taking the necessary baby steps.